This invention generally relates to devices, covers, lids, et cetera for protectively covering control knobs which are typically positioned on appliances such as stoves and ovens.
Personal experience and we believe the experience of the population at large indicates that younger children by having uncontrolled access to the control knobs of stoves and/or ovens cause damage to themselves and to property in general. With hardly any effort a younger child can activate the control knob thereby causing the top burner of the appliance to become hot. With regard to gas appliances having automatic pilot lights, the activation of the control knob will produce a flame which can cause immediate harm to the child. In electric appliances there is a time lag between the time that the control knob is activated and when the cooking surface becomes hot but still this represents a significant potential for injury to the child. It is not uncommon for the younger child to first play with the control knob thereby activating the cooking surface and to later climb upon the cooking surface of the stove, forgetting about the heated surface resulting in serious injury to the child. In addition, an unattended heated cooking surface can result in fire and serious property damage.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a protective device for the various control knobs on an appliance which will deter younger children from purposely or inadvertently activating the control knob. A further purpose of the present invention is to provide a protective device which can be moved off from the control knob to permit proper access thereto.
Accordingly, the invention comprises: a protective device useful with an appliance such as a stove or an oven having at least one control knob operatively positioned on a a first surface of the appliance, the device comprising: first means, movable between a first position and a second position, for protectively enveloping the control knob when in the first position and for permitting access to the control knob when in the second position; and second means for causing the first means to tend to be maintained in the first position.
Many other objects and purposes of the invention will be clear from the following detailed description of the drawings.